Since
I happen to be a kohen, I
figured it would be nice to have some information about this on my
website.
What
is a kohen?
Kahuna is
usually translated as priesthood. A person who is part of the
kahuna is called
a kohen. In the times
of
the Mishkan and the two Temples in Jerusalem, the kohanim (priests)
would
perform the temple duties including sacrificing animals, offering
incense, meal
offerings, etc. and blessing the people with a special
prayer. The kohanim
would also receive gifts from the rest of the Jews called terumah (a
small
portion of ones produce) and challah (a piece of dough taken off before
baking
a loaf of bread).
In order for
a
Jew to be a Kohen, he must be a direct descendant of Aaron (Moses’s
brother).
In addition to being a descendant, one’s family line must be free of
“Challalim” which is the offspring between a kohen and a woman he is
forbidden
to marry (see laws below).
This
priesthood
has been past down father to son for over 3000 years.
Laws
The
laws pertaining to a kohen are
too numerous to delve into here, but I will try to summarize them.
Today,
since it is impossible to
100% be sure that any kohen is a “real” kohen (a true descendant whose
family
line is free of chalalim), kohanim today do not eat challah or terumah
because
if a non-kohen would eat such food, he would receive the punishment of
cares,
or spiritual excision, which is the worst punishment
possible. However,
there is a concept called
“chazakah” in which if a kohen today has a tradition that he is a
“real” kohen,
we assume he is for everything except for that mentioned
above. Therefore,
kohanim today still
bless the rest of the Jews in a service called “Birchas
Kohanim”.
Also, all
the prohibitive laws apply to a kohen today. Very
briefly, these laws include
the prohibition of a kohen to come into contact with a dead body, limb
of a
dead body, or even to be in the same building as a dead body. Also,
a kohen is forbidden to
marry a woman who is a divorcee, or who is a Chalal. Another
law practiced today is for
Jews to honor the kohanim with preference in religious duties.
DNA
Evidence
Recently,
using DNA statistical
tests, researchers have found a gene which is shown to be much higher
in
kohanim then in other Jews. More on this can be read at “The
Tribe” link
below, and the book “DNA and Tradition”.
Links
The Tribe: The Cohen-Levi
Family Heritage
The Temple Institute
Books
Bircas
Kohanim
The
Kohen’s
Handbook
A Guide to Birchas Kohanim
DNA &
Tradition
